Case of missing Pakistani players

The Pakistan episode of the IPL is turning out to be like a gripping murder mystery. The body is there for all to see; there are enough suspects, motives and witnesses too. But somehow we fail to zero in on the culprit, even though he is floating right in front of our eyes. The first clue behind the mystery surfaced on Friday afternoon. Even as Lalit Modi nudged her at the press conference, belatedly, Shilpa Shetty thundered: ‘‘Why should the Pakistan players’ security be our onus?’’ Then she said something-something about political parties and loony groups.

The second part was important, but not critical; the first part was the real clue, the giveaway. A quick follow-up and a few calls later, the mystery solved itself: The government had refused to provide security for the players. For any player, not just Pakistan’s.

The immediate thought was: Very good. Why should the government do anything? Isn’t this a commercial venture? If the IPL can pour out millions on players, and make billions in return, shouldn’t it take care of all aspects related to the tournament too, including security?

Absolutely. Except that the motivation was not so straightforward. To unravel it, we need to go back a little, into the past: In the inaugural year, the government was like a silent partner; it turned almost every stone to make the ambitious project a runaway hit: visas, security, the IPL bosses simply had to name it, and they got them on a golden platter.

The next year, however, the government became a hostile partner: it refused to play sweet ball, explaining that it could not guarantee foolproof security to the players, or to the tournament itself, owing to the General Elections. Instead of negotiating, or trying to convince the seat, Modi promptly whisked away the IPL to South Africa.

Many in the Congress saw it as a slap on their face; more importantly, they were also worried that the backlash might hurl them into the wilderness again. Luckily, cricket proved to be a minor player, the mandate didn’t turn negative and it returned to power.

But then, a hurt political party is more dangerous than a woman spurned: it was just a question of time before Modi would be made to pay for his audacity, for taking on the government itself. Is it a surprise, then, that the Congress mustered all its muscle in Rajasthan a few months later? That it made sure that Modi was humbled in the RCA elections, once again?

That, however, wasn’t enough: it was time to hit Modi’s ticket to fame too, the one thing that keeps him on top of the world. In December, it was revealed that visas for Pakistan players would be denied. Unfortunately for those pulling the strings, the move backfired: many saw it as India’s response to 26/11.

The fact is the government was not even thinking of that carnage. Expectedly, the little game of revenge soon snowballed into a controversy; it turned so ugly that the political ramifications seemed larger than the attacks itself. It quickly backtracked; visas were issued.

All seemed well until the auctions finally took place. Rather unexpectedly, but not too surprisingly, the franchisees didn’t bid for a single Pakistani player. They were, of course, within their rights to choose who they bought and who they ignored. But it wasn’t all as simple as that.

Just imagine the fate of the IPL if one of the political parties, or loony groups, had attacked the players, or violently disrupted a match: that would have been the end of the IPL. Forever. India too, then, would have become a Pakistan, a Zimbabwe for the rest of the cricket world. (It could still happen, thanks to the presence of the Australian players).

In such a scenario, the franchisees did the best thing possible. It is impossible to guess if they arrived at a secret pact; we don’t even know if the IPL itself asked them to go slow. (Would it have been better if the Pakistani players were not put in the pool? Of course. But then, there would have been other charges, other accusations.)

The moot point is that it is more than apparent that the government didn’t give any directives. We don’t know how it is going to firefight out of this hole; but we can be sure of one thing: in the eyes of the people, at least, there is only one culprit, one murderer. Sooner or earlier, Pakistan is going to hit back. Let’s brace for it.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

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Bobilli Vijay Kumar is TOI's National Sports Editor. He writes a weekly column, mainly on cricket; he has many interests, though, going way beyond sport itself: you can't keep him out of a movie hall or away from Floyd or Doors. He loves to cook and show off his French; he can play a tune or two on the guitar too. His current fancy, though, is salsa.

Bobilli Vijay Kumar is TOI's National Sports Editor. He writes a weekly column, mainly on cricket; he has many interests, though, going way beyond sport its. . .